Pinot Noir Coffee Table

A friend on FB send me a pic of something similar, I suppose it was a dare of sorts. Found a wine barrel on Ebay and I was off to the races. Barrel was $105 but the fare to get it to Florida was $190. The barrel is all white oak with some staves being QS. I found some flitch cut white oak at a local supplier to make the other parts. Knew enough about coopering to know I didn’t want to mess with the bands. I found two stave joints that were 180 degrees apart, marked the bands, drilled and installed a screw about a half inch off the scribed lines. Used a grinder to cut the bands.

Just took a stab at the size and shape of the other parts. Cut the legs and the top on the CNC. As you can see the top is a semi rough finish which works for me. Hinged the top for storage, heaven forbid the lid fall on anyone,. After a few weeks of rolling this around in the shop I remember why I like doing small stuff. It is one very heavy and very solid piece. I must admit my shop has never smelled as good as it has while I did this project.

One coat Minwax Golden Oak followed by a coat of Gunstock. Finish with Home Depot’s Valspar semi-gloss from a spray can. The bands were originally galvanized, gave them a coat of Rustoleuom’s Aged Copper. Nothing special or fancy.

As I mentioned I found two stave joints that were 180 degrees apart, once the bands were secured and cut, the barrel fell apart. The staves are not glued and only held in place by the pressure created when the bands are driven into place.